JP7566933B2 - Method, apparatus and network device for self-backhaul network switching - Google Patents

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202010486601.3, filed in China on June 1, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The embodiments of the present application relate to the communications field, and in particular to a method, apparatus and network equipment for self-backhaul network switching.

Currently, in the New Radio (NR) system, integrated access backhaul (IAB) may provide extended coverage to NR cells and may provide enhanced capacity to NR cells, where an access node that supports wireless access for user equipment (UE, which may also be referred to as terminal equipment) and performs wireless backhaul of data is referred to as an IAB node (IABN). Data is transmitted between the UE and the access node via a wireless access link, and data can be transmitted between the access nodes via a wireless backhaul link.

In an IAB network architecture supporting the separate deployment of a centralized unit (CU)/distributed unit (DU), an IAB node may include a DU function part and a mobile termination (MT) function part. Through the MT function part, an access node (i.e., an IABN) can find an upstream access node (i.e., a Parent IABN, P-IABN) and establish a wireless backhaul link with the DU of the upstream access node. After an IAB node establishes a complete backhaul link, the IAB node turns on its DU function, and the DU provides cell service, i.e., the DU can provide network access service to the UE.

Now, in an IAB system, when the IAB network to be switched is switched from a source CU network to a target CU network, the source CU network needs to complete the switching of all IAB network nodes in the IAB network by sending a network switching command to each IAB network node in the IAB network. However, when the switching of an upstream IAB network node is completed, it will cut off the connection with the source CU network, thereby causing the source CU network switching command to be unable to be sent to downstream IAB network nodes, and further causing the network switching flow to be unable to be completed.

The objective of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a method, apparatus, and network equipment for self-backhaul network switching, in which the IAB network to be switched is smoothly switched from the source CU network to the target CU network by ensuring that a source CU network switching command can be transmitted to a downstream IAB network node.

According to a first aspect, a method for self-backhaul network switching for use in a first IAB network node is provided, the method including: receiving a network switch command, the network switch command including a first network switch command and a second network switch command, the first network switch command being used to instruct the first IAB network node to switch from a source CU network to a target CU network, the second network switch command being used to instruct another network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network, the other network node being a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched; and transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node after switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switch command, the second IAB network node being a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node.

According to a second aspect, a device for self-backhaul network switching is provided, the device including: a receiving module for receiving a network switch command, the network switch command including a first network switch command and a second network switch command, the first network switch command being used to instruct the first IAB network node to switch from a source CU network to a target CU network, the second network switch command being used to instruct the other network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network, the other network node being a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched; and a processing module for transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node after switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switch command, the second IAB network node being a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node.

According to a third aspect, there is provided a network device, the network device including a processor, a memory, and a program or instructions stored in the memory and operable on the processor, the program or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method for self-backhaul network switching described in the first aspect.

According to a fourth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, the readable storage medium having stored thereon a program or instructions, which, when executed by a processor, realizes the steps of the method for self-backhaul network switching described in the first aspect.

In the method, device and network equipment for self-backhaul network switching according to the embodiment of the present application, the first IAB network node receives a network switch command, and after switching from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the first network switch command in the network switch command, transmits a second network switch command to the second IAB network node or the UE served by the first IAB network node to instruct the network node downstream of the first IAB network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network in the network switch command, thereby avoiding disconnecting the first IAB network node from the source CU network to cause the second network switch command to be unable to be sent to the downstream node of the first IAB network node, thereby ensuring that the switch command for switching the CU network can be sent to each node in the IAB network to be switched, where the nodes in the IAB network to be switched include each network node in the IAB network to be switched and the UEs they serve, and further ensuring that the switching flow of the IAB network to be switched is performed smoothly.

The drawings described herein are intended to provide further understanding of the present application, constitute a part of the present application, and the exemplary embodiments and the description thereof are intended to interpret the present application and are not intended to be inappropriate limitations on the present application.
FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an IAB system according to one embodiment of the present application. FIG. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an IAB network to be switched according to one embodiment of the present application; 2 is a schematic flowchart of a method for self-backhaul network switching according to one embodiment of the present application; 2 is a schematic flowchart of a method for self-backhaul network switching according to one embodiment of the present application; 2 is a schematic flowchart of a method for self-backhaul network switching according to one embodiment of the present application; FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of a device for self-backhaul network switching according to one embodiment of the present application; FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of a network device according to one embodiment of the present application;

The following clearly and completely describes the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application, in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of this application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of this application, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained based on the embodiments of this application without the need for creative efforts by those skilled in the art are within the scope of protection of this application.

The terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification and claims of this application are intended to distinguish between similar objects and are not intended to describe a particular order or sequence. It is to be understood that such terms used are interchangeable where appropriate, so that the embodiments of this application may be performed in an order other than that shown or described herein. Note that "and/or" in the specification and claims represents at least one of the objects connected, and the character "/" generally represents an "or" relationship between related objects.

In the embodiments of the present application, the User Equipment (UE) may include, but is not limited to, a Mobile Station (MS), a Mobile Terminal, a Mobile Telephone, a mobile phone (handset), a portable equipment (portable equipment), a vehicle, etc. The UE may communicate with one or more core networks via a Radio Access Network (RAN), for example, the UE may provide wireless access services, etc., via an IAB network node. Alternatively, the UE may be a mobile phone (also called a "cellular" phone), a computer with wireless communication capabilities, etc., and the terminal equipment may be a portable, pocket, handheld, computer-embedded, or vehicle-mounted mobile device.

As shown in FIG. 1, it is a CU-DU structural diagram of an IAB system according to an embodiment of the present application. In one self-backhaul link, the DUs in the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network (IAB network 1 in FIG. 1) are all connected to one CU network, and the CU network can configure the DUs through the F1-AP protocol and configure the MTs through the Radio Resource Control (RRC) protocol. One self-backhaul link further includes one Donor IAB network node (or referred to as IAB Donor), which does not have an MT function part, but has a wired transmission network directly connected to it.

In practical applications, take the IAB network 1 shown in FIG. 1 as an example. The IAB network 1 may include multiple IAB network nodes (IAB1, IAB2, IAB3, etc. shown in FIG. 2) connected in a hierarchical manner as shown in FIG. 2, and UEs (UE1, UE2, etc. shown in FIG. 2) that provide network access services through each IAB network node, where the IAB network node IAB1 is the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network 1, the network node IAB1 is the parent IAB network node of the downstream network node IAB2 adjacent to it, the network node IAB2 is the parent IAB network node of the downstream network node IAB3 adjacent to it, etc. In other words, the network node IAB2 is the sub-IAB network node of the upstream network node IAB1 adjacent to it, and the network node IAB3 is the sub-IAB network node of the downstream network node IAB2 adjacent to it. Additionally, one IAB network node may provide network access services to one or more UEs.

In FIG. 3, one exemplary embodiment of the present application provides a method 300 for self-backhaul network switching, which may be performed by a first IAB network node, which may be any one of the IAB network nodes in the IAB network to be switched, such as "IAB1, IAB2, IAB3..." in FIG. 2. Specifically, the method 300 may be performed by software or hardware installed in the first IAB network node, which includes at least the following steps:

S310: Receive network switching command.

The first IAB network node receives a network switch command. Here, the network switch command may include at least a first network switch command and a second network switch command, where the first network switch command is used to instruct the first IAB network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network, and the second network switch command is used to instruct another network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network, where the other network node is a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched, and the network node may be the IAB network node or a UE served by the IAB network node.

In one implementation, when the first IAB network node is the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched (IAB1 in FIG. 2), this step specifically includes the first IAB network node, i.e., the most upstream IAB network node (IAB1), receiving the network switch command sent by the source CU network node, and in one implementation, this network switch command is forwarded when the source CU network node determines that it has received all network switch commands generated by the target CU network node for network nodes in the IAB network to be switched. Specifically, referring to FIG. 2, the process in which the source CU network node forwards the network switch command to the first IAB network node can be realized by (1)-(3) as follows:

(1) The source CU network generates a network migration request (Migration Request) for all network nodes in the IAB network to be switched (including the IAB network nodes and the UEs served by the IAB network nodes, etc.) and sends it to the target CU network, where each network migration request includes context information of each network node.

(2) After the target CU network receives the network switching request sent by the source CU network, it may establish a network switching environment (including DU and MT) serving each network node in the IAB network to be switched according to the context information of each network node carried in the network switching request, such as bearer establishment, radio resource configuration, backhaul channel configuration, etc., and generate a network switching command corresponding to each network node in the IAB network to be switched (including the IAB network node and the UE served by the IAB network node), for example including five network switching commands corresponding to IAB1-3, UE1-2, respectively, and send the network switching command to the source CU network.

(3) After receiving the network switch command, the source CU network sends the network switch command to the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched. In practical application, in order to avoid the most upstream IAB network node not yet receiving all the network switch commands and disconnecting the connection with the source CU network, causing a network switch failure, the source CU network may forward the network switch command to the most upstream IAB network node when it determines that the target CU network has received all the network switch commands generated for the network nodes in the IAB network to be switched. For example, after the source CU network receives a total of five network switch commands corresponding to IAB1-3 and UE1-2, respectively, it forwards the network switch command to the most upstream IAB network node. Here, the embodiment does not limit the method of sending the network switch command.

As another implementation method, when the first IAB network node is any one of the IAB network nodes other than the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched, the network switching command is forwarded by the parent IAB network node of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched. For example, when the first IAB network node is IAB2 shown in FIG. 2, the network switching command is forwarded by the parent IAB network node IAB1 of IAB2, and when the first IAB network node is IAB3, the network switching command is forwarded by the parent IAB network node IAB2 of IAB3.

S320: After switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switching command, send a second network switching command to the second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node.

Here, the second IAB network node is a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node. In one implementation, in the IAB network to be switched, the aforementioned sub-IAB network node refers to the next IAB network node located downstream of the first IAB network node and adjacent to the first IAB network node. For example, referring to FIG. 2, when the first IAB network node is IAB1 shown in FIG. 2, the second IAB network node may be IAB2 shown in FIG. 2, and the UE served by the first IAB network node may be UE1 shown in FIG. 2, or when the first IAB network node is IAB2 shown in FIG. 2, the second IAB network node may be IAB3 shown in FIG. 2, and the UE served by the first IAB network node may be UE2 shown in FIG. 2.

In practical application, the first IAB network node performs network switching based on the first network switching command, including but not limited to relocation for DU, relocation of MT, and switching of data channels on the S1-U (S1 for the user plane) or NG-U interface associated with the first IAB network node. It should be understood that NG-U is a user plane interface between the radio access network (NG-RAN) and the 5G core network (5GC), where the switching order of each part is not limited in this embodiment.

In the above-described self-backhaul network switching method according to this embodiment, when the first IAB network node receives a network switch command, after switching from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the first network switch command, the first IAB network node transmits a second network switch command to the second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node to instruct the network node downstream of the first IAB network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network. This effectively avoids the problem that the second network switch command is sent by the first IAB network node without requesting the source CU network, causing the first IAB network node to disconnect from the source CU network after completing the network switch, resulting in the second network switch command being unable to be sent to the downstream IAB network node, and ensures that the IAB network switching flow to be switched can be performed smoothly.

FIG. 4 illustrates a method 400 for self-backhaul network switching according to another embodiment of the present application, which may be performed by a first IAB network node, which may be any one of the IAB network nodes in the IAB network to be switched to, such as "IAB1, IAB2, IAB3..." in FIG. 2. Specifically, the method may be performed by software or hardware installed in the first IAB network node, which includes the following steps:

S410: Receive network switching command.

This step may adopt a description that is the same as or similar to the embodiment step S310 in FIG. 3, and the repeated parts will not be described further.

In this embodiment, the network switching command may be transmitted by a signaling container.

Specifically, when the source CU network receives the network switch command sent by the target CU network, the source CU network may store the network switch command in a signaling container that the first IAB network node can identify, so that the first IAB network node can receive and identify the first network switch command and the second network switch command through the signaling container. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the source CU network transmits a network switch command corresponding to IAB1 through signaling container 1, transmits a network switch command corresponding to IAB2 through signaling container 2, transmits a network switch command corresponding to IAB3 through signaling container 3, transmits a network switch command corresponding to UE1 through signaling container 4, and transmits a network switch command corresponding to UE2 through signaling container 5. Optionally, the signaling container is an F1-AP signaling container or an RRC signaling container.

In this embodiment, a signaling container is adopted to realize the transmission of the network switching command, which can improve the identification efficiency of the first IAB network node for the network switching command and ensure the reliability of the second network switching command transmission process, thereby avoiding problems such as command loss.

S420, determining that the first IAB network node has already completed receiving the network switch command.

In one or more implementation methods of the present application, before the first IAB network node is switched from the source CU network to the target CU network, the first IAB network node may first determine that it has already received all network switch commands sent by the source CU network or the parent IAB network node, so that the first IAB network node can send all corresponding second network switch commands to the second IAB network node or the UE served by the first IAB network node to indicate that the network nodes downstream of the first IAB network node have completed the switch smoothly, and avoid the problem that any one of the network nodes downstream of the first network node disconnects from the source CU network due to the first IAB network node, causing it to be unable to send the second network switch command to the downstream node. Specifically, the first IAB network node may determine that it has already received all network switch commands sent by the source CU network or the parent IAB network node by at least one of the following three methods.

(1) The total number of received network switching commands matches the total number of network switching commands indicated in the signaling container. In practical application, as one implementation manner, a second number of network switching commands may be indicated in the signaling container, and it can be determined that the reception of the network switching commands is completed when the first number of received network switching commands (including the first network switching command and the second network switching command) is equal to the second number indicated in the signaling container.

In addition, the signaling container may further indicate the number of each network switching command. In this way, when making the determination, the total number of received network switching commands and the number corresponding to each network switching command are simultaneously compared and analyzed, and when the two match, it can be determined that reception of the network switching commands is complete.

It should be noted that when multiple network switch commands are transmitted correspondingly via multiple signaling containers, the total number and/or number of received network switch commands may be determined based on the number and/or number of received signaling containers, and this embodiment is not limited thereto.

(2) The received network switching command includes a predetermined network switching command, where the predetermined network switching command may be an MT switching command or a DU switching command. As can be understood, in an IAB network, the IAB network may include multiple IAB network nodes, and each IAB network node may include an MT and a DU, so the predetermined network switching command may be a predetermined network switching command corresponding to any one of the predetermined IAB network nodes, i.e., the MT switching command or the DU switching command may be an MT switching command or a DU switching command corresponding to any one of the predetermined IAB network nodes, and this embodiment is not limited thereto.

In practical applications, when the source CU network or the parent IAB network node of the first IAB network node sends a network switch command, it may send the above-mentioned specific network switch command last, so that when the first IAB network node receives the specific network switch command, it can determine that it has already received all of the network switch commands sent by the source CU network or the parent IAB network node.

(3) Receive a notification message to indicate completion of the switch command transmission. Here, the notification message may be one sent by the source CU network or parent IAB network node to the first IAB network node after completing the network switch command transmission, thereby notifying the first IAB network node that all network switch commands have been sent and the network switch flow can be initiated.

The three above-mentioned methods may be combined in any manner, for example, the first IAB network node may determine that it has received all network switch commands sent by the source CU network or parent IAB network node based on any one, two, or three of the above-mentioned three methods, thereby ensuring that each network node in the IAB network to be switched can be smoothly switched to the target CU network.

S430, determine whether the first IAB network node is a command transfer endpoint.

If the first IAB network node is not the command transfer endpoint, perform the following steps.

Conversely, when the first IAB network node is a command forwarding endpoint, the first IAB network node may not cache or forward the second network switching command or the signaling container, but may directly perform switching from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the first network switching command. This can avoid unnecessary storage and forwarding of the second network switching command, avoiding resource waste and improving network switching efficiency.

In one implementation, the first IAB network node may determine whether the first IAB network node is a command forwarding endpoint based on, but not limited to, a destination Backhaul Adaptation Protocol (BAP) address in a routing identifier (Routing ID) carried in a network switch command. In this embodiment, the above determination made based on the destination BAP address can improve the determination efficiency and ensure the reliability of the determination result.

S440: The second network switching command is cached by the DU.

Here, this step is performed after the first IAB network node receives the network switch command and before executing the first network switch command. After completing its own switch, the first IAB network node can instruct the downstream network node to perform network switch by transmitting the cached second network switch command to a downstream network node, such as a sub-IAB network node and a UE served by the first IAB network node. In one implementation manner, caching the second network switch command may be achieved by caching a corresponding signaling container.

S450, switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switching command.

In one implementation, this step may include MT rearrangement and DU rearrangement.

In another implementation, in order to avoid a situation in which the configuration information of the first IAB network node and the downstream network node it serves (e.g., a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node) does not match after performing relocation on the DU of the first IAB network node, and further causing the inability to send a second network switch command to the downstream network node, in one or more embodiments of the present application, the process of the first IAB network node switching from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the first network switch command may include performing MT relocation based on the first network switch command.

S460, after switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switching command, sending the second network switching command to the second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node.

This step may adopt a description that is the same as or similar to the embodiment step S320 in FIG. 3, and the repeated parts will not be described further.

In S450, if MT relocation is performed but DU relocation is not performed, after S460, after determining that the second network switch command has been transmitted to the UE served by the second IAB network node or the first IAB network node, DU relocation is performed for the first IAB network node based on the first network switch command, thereby avoiding a situation in which, after relocation is performed for the DU of the first IAB network node, the configuration information of the first IAB network node and the downstream network node it serves (e.g., the second IAB network node or the UE served by the first IAB network node) does not match, and further, the second network switch command cannot be transmitted to the downstream network node.

S470: Send a network switching completion notification to the target CU network.

After the first IAB network node determines that it has completed sending the second network switch command to the second IAB network node, it can further send a network switch completion notification to the target CU network to notify the target CU network that it has completed switching the first IAB network node, and the target CU network can notify the source CU network that it has completed switching the first IAB network node, and the source CU network can delete context information and associated configurations related to the first IAB network node.

In the above-mentioned self-backhaul network switching method according to this embodiment, after receiving the network switch command, the first IAB network node first caches the second network switch command to instruct the downstream network node to perform network switching, and after the first IAB network node is switched to the target CU network, it sends the second network switch command to the second IAB network node or the UE served by the first IAB network node. This effectively avoids the problem that the second network switch command cannot be sent to the downstream IAB network node because the first IAB network node disconnects the connection with the source CU network after completing the network switch, since the second network switch command is sent by the first IAB network node without requesting the source CU network, and ensures that the IAB network switching flow to be switched can be performed smoothly.

FIG. 5 illustrates a method 500 for self-backhaul network switching according to another embodiment of the present application, which may be performed by a first IAB network node, which may be any one of the IAB network nodes in the IAB network to be switched to, such as IAB1, IAB2, IAB3... IABn, and UE1, UE2... UEn in FIG. 2. Specifically, the method may be performed by software or hardware installed in the first IAB network node, which includes the following steps:

S511, IAB1 receives a network switching command.

Let IAB1 be the first IAB network node in this step, and referring to FIG. 2, let IAB1 be the most upstream IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched, and its downstream network nodes are other network nodes, which include IAB2, IAB3, UE1, and UE2. IAB1 receives a network switch command from a source CU network node, and the network switch command includes a first network switch command and a second network switch command. For example, the network switching command may include a network switching command a transmitted by signaling container 1 instructing IAB1 to perform a network switch, a network switching command b transmitted by signaling container 2 instructing IAB2 to perform a network switch, a network switching command c transmitted by signaling container 3 instructing IAB3 to perform a network switch, a network switching command d transmitted by signaling container 4 corresponding to UE1, and a network switching command e transmitted by signaling container 5 corresponding to UE2. The network switching command a may be the first network switching command in this step, and the network switching commands b-e may be the second network switching commands in this step.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the parts corresponding to S310 and S410 above, and the repeated parts will not be explained further here.

S512, IAB1 determines that it has completed receiving the network switch command.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S420 above, and no further explanation will be given here.

S513: Determine whether IAB1 is the command transfer end point.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S430 described above, and no further explanation will be given here. In this embodiment, since IAB1 is not the command transfer end point, the following steps are executed.

S514, IAB1 caches the second network switching command by DU.

The IAB1 may cache the network switching command b-e by DU, and may optionally cache the corresponding signaling container 2-5. The specific implementation process of this step may refer to the description of the part corresponding to S440 above, and will not be described further here.

S515: Switch IAB1 from the source CU network to the target CU network based on network switching command a.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S450 above, and no further explanation will be given here.

S516, after switching IAB1 to the target CU network based on network switching command a, send the second network switching command to a UE served by a second IAB network node or the first IAB network node.

In one implementation, when the second network switch command is sent to the second IAB network node, the second network switch command is transmitted by the signaling container. For example, when IAB1 sends a network switch command b-e to IAB2, the network switch command b-e is transmitted by a signaling container, i.e., transmits the corresponding signaling container 2-5.

In one implementation, when the first IAB network node sends the second network switch command to the UE it serves, it can read the second network switch command in the signaling container and send it to the UE. For example, when IAB1 sends the second network switch command to UE1 it serves, IAB1 reads the second network switch command d corresponding to UE1 in the signaling container and sends the read second network switch command d to UE1. In response, after receiving the second network switch command d, UE1 switches from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the network switch command d.

In response to S516, IAB2 receives a network switching command.

In this case, IAB2 is the first IAB network node that receives the network switch command, and its downstream network nodes are other network nodes, including IAB3 and UE2. Referring to FIG. 2, in the IAB network to be switched, IAB2 is a subnode of IAB1, which receives a network switch command b-e from IAB1, and the network switch command b-e includes a first network switch command b and a second network switch command c, d, e. For example, the network switch command b corresponding to IAB2 transmitted by signaling container 2, the network switch command c corresponding to IAB3 transmitted by signaling container 3, the network switch command d corresponding to UE1 transmitted by signaling container 4, and the network switch command e corresponding to UE2 transmitted by signaling container 5 may include the network switch command b. Network switching command b may be the first network switching command in this step, and network switching commands c, d, and e may be the second network switching commands in this step.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the parts corresponding to S310 and S410 above, and the repeated parts will not be explained further here.

S522, IAB2 determines that it has completed receiving the network switch command.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S420 above, and no further explanation will be given here.

S523: Determine whether IAB2 is the command transfer end point.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S430 above, and no further explanation will be given here. In this embodiment, since IAB2 is not the command transfer end point, the following steps are executed.

S524, IAB2 caches the second network switching command by DU.

The IAB 2 may cache the network switching commands c -e through the DU, and optionally cache the corresponding signaling containers 3-5. The specific implementation process of this step may refer to the description of the part corresponding to S440 above, and will not be further described here.

S525, switch IAB2 from the source CU network to the target CU network based on network switching command b.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S450 above, and no further explanation will be given here.

S526: After switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switching command, send the second network switching command to the second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node.

In one implementation, when the second network switch command is sent to the second IAB network node, the second network switch command is transmitted by the signaling container. For example, when IAB2 sends network switch command c-e to IAB3, the network switch command c-e is transmitted by a signaling container, i.e., transmits the corresponding signaling container 3-5.

In one implementation, when the first IAB network node sends the second network switch command to the UE it serves, it can read the second network switch command in the signaling container and send it to the UE. For example, when IAB2 sends the second network switch command to the UE2 it serves, IAB2 reads the second network switch command e corresponding to UE2 in the signaling container and sends the read second network switch command e to UE2. In response, after receiving the second network switch command e, UE2 switches from the source CU network to the target CU network based on the network switch command e.

In response to S526, IAB3 receives a network switching command.

At this time, IAB3 is the first IAB network node that receives the network switching command in this step. Referring to FIG. 2, in the IAB network to be switched, IAB3 is a subnode of IAB2, which receives network switching commands c-e from IAB2, and the network switching commands c-e include a first network switching command c and second network switching commands d, e. For example, the network switching command c corresponding to IAB3 transmitted by signaling container 3, the network switching command d corresponding to UE1 transmitted by signaling container 4, and the network switching command e corresponding to UE2 transmitted by signaling container 5 may be included. The network switching command c may be the first network switching command in this step, and the network switching commands d, e may be the second network switching commands in this step.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the parts corresponding to S310 and S410 above, and the repeated parts will not be explained further here.

S532, IAB3 determines that it has completed receiving the network switch command.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S420 above, and no further explanation will be given here.

S533: Determine whether IAB3 is the command transfer end point.

For the specific implementation process of this step, please refer to the description of the part corresponding to S430 described above, and no further explanation will be given here. In this embodiment, since IAB3 is the command transfer end point, the following steps are executed.

S534: Switch IAB3 from the source CU network to the target CU network based on network switching command c.

Because IAB3 is the command transfer endpoint, there is no need to perform switching command cache operations.

This embodiment is described by taking an example in which the IAB network to be switched has five nodes, namely IAB1, 2, 3, UE1, and 2, but a person skilled in the art can apply the technical solution described in this embodiment to an IAB network with any number of nodes without exerting creative effort.

It should be noted that, for the method of self-backhaul network switching according to the embodiment of the present application, the execution body may be a device of self-backhaul network switching, or a control module for executing and loading the above method in the device. In the embodiment of the present application, the device of self-backhaul network switching executes and loads the method of self-backhaul network switching as an example to describe the method of self-backhaul network switching according to the embodiment of the present application.

Figure 6 is a structural schematic diagram of an apparatus 600 for self-backhaul network switching according to one embodiment of the present application, which may be a first IAB network node or may be used in a first IAB network node. As shown in Figure 6, the apparatus 600 for self-backhaul network switching includes at least a receiving module 610 and a processing module 620.

For a receiving module 610 for receiving a network switch command, the network switch command includes a first network switch command and a second network switch command, the first network switch command is used to instruct the first IAB network node to switch from a source CU network to a target CU network, and the second network switch command is used to instruct the other network node to switch from the source CU network to the target CU network, the other network node being a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched, and for a processing module 620 for transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node after switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switch command, the second IAB network node is a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is further used to cache the second network switch command by the DU.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the network switch command is forwarded when the source CU network node determines that the target CU network node has received all network switch commands generated for network nodes in the IAB network to which the switch is to be made, or is forwarded by a parent IAB network node of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to which the switch is to be made.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the network switch command is transmitted by a signaling container.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is used to transmit the second network switch command by the signaling container when the second network switch command is sent to the second IAB network node, and to read the second network switch command in the signaling container and send it to the UE when the first IAB network node sends the second network switch command to a UE it serves.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the signaling container is an F1-AP signaling container or an RRC signaling container.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is used to cache the signaling container when the first IAB network node is not a command forwarding endpoint, and to perform the steps of calling the processing module 620 to transmit the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node after switching the first IAB network node to the target CU network based on the first network switch command.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is used to determine whether the first IAB network node is a command forwarding endpoint based on a destination BAP address in a routing identifier carried in the network switch command.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is used to determine that the first IAB network node has completed receiving the network switch command by at least one of the following manners, where the total number of the received network switch commands matches the total number of network switch commands indicated in the signaling container, the received network switch commands include a predetermined network switch command, where the predetermined network switch command is an MT switch command or a DU switch command, and receiving a notification message to indicate completion of the switch command transmission.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is used to perform MT relocation based on the first network switch command, and after determining that transmission of the second network switch command to the second IAB network node is completed, perform DU relocation to the first IAB network node based on the first network switch command.

In one or more embodiments of the present application, the processing module 620 is further used to send a network switching completion notification to the target CU network.

The apparatus 600 for self-backhaul network switching according to an embodiment of the present invention may refer to the flow of the corresponding method 300-400 of the embodiment of the present invention, and each unit/module and other operations and/or functions in the apparatus 600 for self-backhaul network switching are for realizing the corresponding flow in the method 300-400, and can achieve the same or equivalent technical effects, and will not be further described here for the sake of brevity.

Referring to FIG. 7, FIG. 7 is a structural diagram of a network device that applies the method for self-backhaul network switching according to an embodiment of the present application, which can realize the details of the embodiment of the method, such as the steps of method 300 or method 400, and achieve the same effect.

As shown in FIG. 7, the network device 700 includes a processor 701, a transceiver 702, a memory 703 and a bus interface, where:
In an embodiment of the present application, the network equipment 700 further includes a program or instruction stored in the memory 703 and capable of running on the processor 701, which, when executed by the processor 701, can realize each process of the embodiment of the self-backhaul network switching method, for example, the steps of method 300 or method 400, and can achieve the same technical effect, which will not be described further here in order to avoid repetition of description.

In FIG. 7, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits, such as one or more processors represented by processor 701 and memory represented by memory 703. The bus architecture may link various other circuits, such as peripherals, voltage regulators and power management circuits, etc., all of which are known in the art and will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The transceiver 702 may be multiple elements, i.e., includes a transmitter and a receiver, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium.

Processor 701 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and memory 703 stores data used in the execution of processor 701 's operations.

The embodiments of the present application further provide a readable storage medium, on which a program or instruction is stored, which, when executed by a processor, can realize each process of the above-mentioned self-backhaul network switching method embodiments 300-400 and achieve the same technical effect. In order to avoid repetition, no further description will be given here.

Here, the processor is the processor in the network device described in the above embodiment. The readable storage medium includes a computer readable storage medium, such as a computer read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a chip, the chip including a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface being coupled to the processor, the processor being used to run a program or instruction, and capable of realizing each process of the embodiment of the method for self-backhaul network switching described above and achieving the same technical effect. In order to avoid repetition of description, no further description will be given here.

It should be understood that the chips referred to in the embodiments of this application may be referred to as system level chips, system chips, chip systems, or systems on chips, etc.

It should be explained that in this specification, the terms "comprise", "include", or any other variants thereof are intended to cover the non-exclusive "comprise", whereby a process, method, article, or apparatus that includes a set of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not specifically listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. In the absence of further limitations, an element limited by the phrase "comprises one of" does not preclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes this element. It should be pointed out that the scope of the method and apparatus in the embodiments of this application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, but may include performing functions in an essentially simultaneous manner or in reverse order based on the functions involved, for example, the described method can be performed in a different order than described, and various steps can be added, omitted, or combined. Also, features described with reference to some examples can be combined in other examples.

As will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the above description of the embodiments, the methods of the above embodiments can be realized in the form of software and a necessary general-purpose hardware platform. Of course, they can also be realized in hardware, but in many cases the former is a more preferred embodiment. With this understanding in mind, the technical proposal of the present application may be embodied in the form of a software product in substance or in part that contributes to the prior art. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium (e.g., ROM/RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk) and includes some instructions for causing a terminal (which may be a mobile phone, computer, server, air conditioner, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present application.

The above describes the embodiments of the present application with reference to the drawings, but the present application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not limiting. Those skilled in the art can implement many forms based on the suggestions of this application as long as they do not deviate from the spirit of this application and the scope of protection of the claims, and all of them fall within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims (15)

1. A method for self-backhaul network switching for use in a first access backhaul integrated IAB network node, comprising:
receiving network switch commands, the network switch commands including a first network switch command and a second network switch command, the first network switch command being used to instruct the first IAB network node to switch from a source donor IAB network node to a target donor IAB network node , the second network switch command being used to instruct the other network node to switch from the source donor IAB network node to a target donor IAB network node , the other network node being a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in an IAB network to be switched;
and after switching the first IAB network node to the target donor IAB network node based on the first network switch command, sending the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a user equipment UE served by the first IAB network node, the second IAB network node being a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node. After receiving the network switching command, the method includes:
The method of claim 1, further comprising caching the second network switching command by a distributed unit DU. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the network switch command is forwarded when a source donor IAB network node determines that a target donor IAB network node has received all network switch commands generated for network nodes in the IAB network to be switched to; or the network switch command is forwarded by a parent IAB network node of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched to. The method for self-backhaul network switching according to claim 1, wherein the network switch command is transmitted by a signaling container. transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node,
When sending the second network switch command to the second IAB network node, the second network switch command is carried by the signaling container; and
5. The method of claim 4, further comprising: when the first IAB network node sends the second network switch command to a serving UE, reading the second network switch command in the signaling container and sending it to the UE. The method for self-backhaul network switching according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the signaling container is an F1-AP signaling container or a radio resource control (RRC) signaling container. After receiving the network switching command, the method includes:
5. The method for self-backhaul network switching of claim 4, further comprising: if the first IAB network node is not a command forwarding endpoint, caching the signaling container; and, after switching the first IAB network node to the target donor IAB network node based on the first network switch command, transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a UE served by the first IAB network node. After receiving the network switching command, the method includes:
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising: determining whether the first IAB network node is a command forwarding endpoint based on a destination BAP address in a routing identifier carried in the network switch command. After receiving the network switching command, the method includes:
and determining that the first IAB network node completes receiving the network switch command by at least one of the following manners, wherein the following manners include:
a total number of the received network switch commands matches a total number of network switch commands indicated in the signaling container; and
The received network switch command includes a predetermined network switch command, where the predetermined network switch command is a mobile terminal MT switch command or a DU switch command;
and receiving a notification message to indicate completion of sending the switch command. said switching said first IAB network node to said target donor IAB network node includes performing MT relocation based on said first network switch command;
After determining to complete transmitting the second network switch command to the second IAB network node, the method further comprises:
2. The method for self-backhaul network switching of claim 1, further comprising: performing DU relocation to the first IAB network node based on the first network switch command. After determining that the second network switch command has been transmitted to the second IAB network node, the method further comprises:
The method of claim 10 , further comprising: sending a network switch completion notification to the target donor IAB network node . a receiving module for receiving network switch commands, the network switch commands including a first network switch command and a second network switch command, the first network switch command being used to instruct the first access backhaul integrated IAB network node to switch from a source donor IAB network node to a target donor IAB network node , the second network switch command being used to instruct the other network node to switch from the source donor IAB network node to a target donor IAB network node , the other network node being a network node downstream of the first IAB network node in an IAB network to be switched;
and a processing module for transmitting the second network switch command to a second IAB network node or a user equipment UE served by the first IAB network node after switching the first IAB network node to the target donor IAB network node based on the first network switch command, the second IAB network node being a sub-IAB network node of the first IAB network node. The self-backhaul network switching device of claim 12, wherein the processing module is further used by the distributed unit DU to cache the second network switching command. 13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the network switch command is forwarded when a source donor IAB network node determines that a target donor IAB network node has received all network switch commands generated for network nodes in the IAB network to be switched to; or the network switch command is forwarded by a parent IAB network node of the first IAB network node in the IAB network to be switched to. A readable storage medium having a program or instructions stored thereon, the program or instructions being executed by a processor to implement the steps of the method for self-backhaul network switching according to any one of claims 1 to 11.